Rehabilitated with Korean assistance:

President to open Padeniya-A’pura road

by Ranil Wijayapala

President Mahinda Rajapaksa will open tomorrow, the Padeniya-Anuradhapura road which has been rehabilitated at a cost of Rs.7 billion with Korean assistance enabling people to have easy access to Anuradhapura and other destinations in the Northern and North Central Provinces.

The opening ceremony will take place at Padeniya junction at 10 am.

The 80-kilometre stretch of road had been in a neglected state for decades. The Ports and Highways Ministry will widen the road to 15 metres with two lanes each - 3.5 metres wide under the program. This will be the first road of 1.5 metres width, with two cycle lanes on either side of the road. It will have two gravel lanes with a width of two metres.

According to Ports and Highways Project Minister, Nirmala Kothalawala the construction of this road will improve the efficiency of road transportation between the Western Province, North Western Province and the North Central Province. This road will facilitate easy access for devotees visiting the sacred Anuradhapura city and it will also reduce the travel time to Anuradhapura and other destinations in the North which is less congested compared to the road via Dambulla. South Korean Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Jong Moon-Choi, Ministers and other Government officials will also participate.